Coffee
by PurpleAngel87
Summary: Someone once told me that the type of coffee a person drinks is reflective of their personality. Caitlyn tries to find out why her friends drink the coffees that they do. Caitlyn's POV. Mentions of Shane/Mitchie, Jason/Tess and eventual Nate/Caitlyn.
1. Coffee on Sunday

Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Camp Rock or Starbucks.

AN: This is still written for the **'101 Prompts Challenge'** but it's going to be a chapter fic. Each chapter will focus on one person and will be loosely based on one of the prompts from the prompts list. The link to the forum is up on my profile if anyone wants to check it out. Chapter One follows the prompt of No. 49 **Coffee** and isn't really centered on one person in the same way that the other chapters will be but introduces the whole idea to this story.

A huge thank you to **Suburbs** for betaing and also I felt the idea was slightly similar to one of her stories but she convinced me it wasn't and encouraged me to write it. Thank you so much!

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**Chapter 1: Coffee on Sunday**

Okay, so call me strange, but I'm a people watcher. And no, that doesn't come under the category of stalker. Anyway, I'm a people watcher and I tend to notice things fairly quickly. Today's hot topic in the brain of Caitlyn Gellar – coffee. I'm supposed to be meeting the Camp Rock gang in Starbucks, so coffee isn't a completely random topic. Almost makes a nice change from the usual topic of how many colours are in Nate's eyes.

Anyway, it strikes me as plainly interesting, that at 21 years of age, I've got myself into a routine with almost every aspect of my life, including the coffee I order at Starbucks. Someone once told me that the type of coffee a person drinks is reflective of their personality. Well, I always order a mocha. Always. What the hell is that supposed to say about me? That I'm chocolaty? Obviously that's a load of rubbish.

The door opened and in walked my best friend Mitchie Torres. She looked over at me and grinned brightly before making her way over to the counter. Still not quite distracted from my thoughts on coffee, I strained my ears to hear Mitchie's order. If I remembered right, it should be a hot chocolate.

I could barely make out the words, but I heard 'chocolate' and knew I was right. Okay, is Mitchie supposed to be chocolaty too? What the hell is this?

"Hey, Cait," she said as she put her cup down onto the table, stopping to give me a quick hug before taking her seat and adding two sugars to her drink.

It didn't take long before we were both talking nonstop, trying to catch up with each other. I wasn't going to point out that Mitchie just stayed over at mine two days ago…that really wasn't that relevant.

It wasn't long before we hit the topic of my crush on Nate. Before I could even begin any sort of denial, the doors opened again, and this time it was Mitchie's boyfriend, the great (not!) Shane Gray gracing us with his presence. He waved at me and winked at Mitchie before making his way to the counter. And, of course, this brought me back to my original train of thought this morning. And no, I'm not talking about Nate's eyes. I didn't need to strain my ears this time, as Shane's voice carried loudly through the café and everyone heard him order a latte with a shot of cinnamon.

I was immediately confused. I would never have expected Shane to order a plain latte. I wasn't given the opportunity to ponder this however, as the door opened again and Jason and Tess walked in. Together. I raised my eyebrow at Mitchie who shrugged and grinned at the unlikely pair. Even Shane looked shocked, but recovered quickly by asking Jason what he wanted to order.

"A caramel frappuccino and an espresso macchiato," was the quick reply.

I didn't even have to think about who would be taking which drink in this case although the whole personalities thing still confused me. Calorie counting Tess Tyler would never have something like a frappuccino, especially with the amount of whipped cream that Jason was now asking the barista to put on. It frustrated me and I resolved to get to the bottom of it eventually.

I greeted Shane, Jason and Tess as they grabbed their drinks and made their way over to our table. Almost as if it is was his cue, as soon as we were all comfortably settled, Nate walked through the door and smiled in our general direction before heading straight up to the counter.

I was very interested to find out what Nate was going to order, and as I'd just realised I had managed to finish mine, I walked up to join him at the slight queue that had formed at the counter. He noticed me before I had caught up to him and pulled me into a tight hug. I could faintly smell his cologne and I tightened my grip around him slightly.

"Hey, Caitlyn."

I murmured a greeting in response and felt slightly colder when he pulled away. I noticed Mitchie staring at me with a huge grin on her face, and Shane winked at me. I stuck my tongue out at the pair of them before turning back around to Nate.

"How have you been?" He asked, with his usual air of politeness.

"Fine, Nate, but really, this isn't the first time we've met;you don't need to be so polite," I said.

He smiled at me in return before turning to talk the barista who had just asked him if he was ready to order.

"A cappuccino and a mocha, please."

So Nate drinks cappuccinos. Wait, did he just order for me?

"Nate, how did you know what I wanted to drink?"

"Because you always get a mocha," he said whilst pulling out his wallet.

I gaped at him. How had he noticed?

"Yeah. But how did you know that?"

He grinned as he paid the barista, ignoring the slightly violent tendencies I was displaying to try and pay for my own drink. He smirked slightly as I huffed, clearly annoyed that he paid for me.

"Simple, Caitlyn. I pay attention."

I narrowed my eyes at him. I paid attention too! I was a people watcher for crying out loud! He laughed slightly at the look on my face before reaching out for the coffees and making his way over to the table. He sat down and immediately began talking to Shane about their upcoming album.

I followed his footsteps to the table and sat down, choosing, for once, not to talk, but just to take in the scene in front of me. Jason and Tess were being so ridiculously sweet to one another; I felt I might need a visit to the dentist after theday was over. Nate, Shane and Mitchie were deep in conversation about song writing. I refrained from rolling my eyes. How many times were they going to have this conversation?

The rest of the morning passed easily with all of us goofing around and catching up, which was the purpose of this whole get together. Jason and Tess decided to make a move to leave first. Shane and Mitchie followed shortly behind them, both deciding to wink at me on their way out with a few not so subtle glances towards Nate from Mitchie.

"So, what have you got planned for the rest of the day, Caitlyn?"

I tore my eyes away from the door that Shane and Mitchie had just walked though to look at Nate.

"Nate. It's Sunday. Early afternoon. I haven't got any plans for the rest of the day," I stated.

"Okay, then we can hang around for a bit, right?" He asked, taking a sip of his coffee.

I froze. Me and Nate? Together? Did this boy want me to die from sending my heart into shock?

I nodded slightly, before the word coffee crossed my mind again.

"Did you know that supposedly, the type of coffee that a person drinks is reflective of their personality?" I asked. Hopefully, Nate would be able to shed some light on this topic that had me confused as hell.

"I had heard that, actually. It's quite interesting."

"I don't get it. Explain it to me," I stated.

He raised an eyebrow in return. "Did you even try to understand it?"

"Yes! Mitchie always has hot chocolate right? Well, is that supposed to mean she's made of chocolate or something?"

He burst out laughing. "Only you would make that connection. When I said try I meant, really try."

"How do you mean?"

"Okay. Most of us have the next week off right? So why don't you spend one day with each person and drink their kind of coffee and try to figure it out?"

"You're acting like you already know all the answers." I accused. I liked his idea, but I wasn't going to admit it to him.

"I do. I did my research a few weeks ago. So are you up for a challenge? We can meet on Friday and you can tell me what you found. And try my coffee then."

I looked at him. He knew exactly how to play me. All he had to do was add in the word challenge and I would be up for it. Nate was a very sly person. I was going to do the whole thing anyway, but I really liked Nate's idea of spending time with the person too.

I grinned at him. "I'm always up for a challenge, Black."


	2. Confusion on Monday

Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Camp Rock or Starbucks.

AN: This the second chapter of **Coffee. **This chapter is to prompt no. 38 - **Confusion** and this is Shane's chapter. I hope you enjoy it. Thank you to all the people that managed to review/favourite/alert the first chapter. It really means a lot that you liked it!

Once again, a huge thank you to **suburbs** for betaing - without her, this chapter would have a very insightful Shane and would just be plain weird , so thank you very much!

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**Chapter 2: Confusion on Monday**

It was coming up to 7am when I opened the door to Starbucks. Okay, I know Nate had told me to spend the day with the person, but waking Shane up at 7am on Monday morning when he had a day off was all my idea. I had to do things the Caitlyn way, and ruining Shane's beauty sleep was too good to pass up.

I had managed to call everyone last night asking if I could spend a day with them this week, because I didn't want to drop in unannounced. I had checked times with everyone except Shane…I think he had assumed because I'd called so late, I wouldn't be dropping in at the crack of dawn. Clearly, he didn't know me as well as he thought he did.

"Can I get two lattes with a shot of cinnamon to take away, please?" I asked the barista behind the counter. I wasn't particularly looking forward to trying a different coffee. I had become so used to my own flavour that it felt strange to even be ordering something different. I sighed. It had to be done however, if I ever wanted to find peace of mind from this whole coffee dilemma. And, no way in hell was I going to be happy if Nate knew something that I didn't.

I paid the young girl behind the counter and picked up my coffees. I rested my back against the door to push it open and was immediately met by a cold wind. I walked over to my car, resting the coffees on the roof so I could get in. Shane didn't live too far from my apartment but after the detour to Starbucks I found an insane amount of traffic for such an ungodly hour in the morning. I prayed the coffee would still be at least warm by the time I got there.

Fifteen minutes later, I pulled into Shane's driveway, behind his car. Shane shared a house with both Nate and Jason. They had tried for a very short amount of time to all live separately; all that had resulted from this was a very moody Shane, a really stressed Nate and an extra hyper Jason. After that, I guessed they realised how much they depended on each other to stay relatively normal. I use the word relatively in this case because I don't think any of Connect 3 could ever be described as normal.

I grabbed the two coffees out of the car and swung the door shut with my hip, before walking up the driveway to the front door. I used my elbow to ring the doorbell and waited tapping my toe on the concrete floor, playing out a beat I had heard just now on the radio. I waited a couple of minutes before realising that no one was coming so I used my elbow to ring the doorbell again. Twice. Hey, it's cold out here!

I heard some muffled footsteps followed by a crash and some colourful language. I stifled a laugh and heard the unmistakeable sound of a Shane Gray who had just been awoken from his beauty sleep. He finally managed to unlock the door and swing it open, looking down at me and taking in my appearance.

"Did someone die? Or have a car crash? 'Cause I'm sure that you wouldn't wake Shane Gray up at half past seven on Monday for no reason."

I laughed. "Morning, Shane!" I said as brightly as I could manage.

He groaned. "I hate you, Caitlyn."

I smiled, making my way into his kitchen with his thudding footsteps following behind me at snail's pace.

I took a seat at the breakfast bar, placing the coffees on the counter. He took a seat opposite me and eyed the coffee cups warily. I pushed one towards him along with some sachets of sugar. He nodded as way of saying thanks before tearing open one sachet and mixing it into his cup. I waited only for a couple of seconds before following suit. I had to have my coffee exactly like him to figure it out. I watched as he took a sip, praying that the coffee hadn't gotten cold. He swallowed, before looking up at me.

"Thanks, Cait. I really needed that. Although, I wouldn't have really needed it if I hadn't been woken at half seven this morning," he said shooting an accusatory glance at me. I grinned sheepishly, before taking a sip from my own cup.

It was slightly bitter but I could faintly detect the slight spiciness from the cinnamon and the slight sweetness from the sugar and in that moment, I don't know what it was but I knew that this coffee was _so_ Shane.

"So Cait, what do you want to do today? You said you wanted to spend the whole day together**. **Have you got any plans?" He looked slightly more awake now that he had some coffee. Before I had begun to answer him, he started talking once again.

"Actually you know what, I think we should start off having some breakfast. I don't know about you, but I need some breakfast first before I spend the whole day with my girlfriend's best friend."

I frowned. "Is that all you think of me? That I'm your girlfriend's best friend?" I asked.

He looked up at me from across the worktop. "I guess. Not in a bad way though! It's just…we don't really spend a lot of time together other than when we're all together. I guess, that's why I was quite interested to meet up today when you called me last night. I wanted to find out more about you... other than the fact that you have a crush on Nate," he finished, smirking at me.

I groaned. "I'm going to kill that girlfriend of yours," I said.

"Hey, don't do that! I need her, you know," he said**. **And I knew he really meant it. He needed Mitchie to keep him grounded just as much as he needed Nate and Jason to keep him sane.

I chuckled, before taking another sip of my coffee. Strangely enough, it was beginning to grow on me. I still hadn't accomplished my goal though, so I decided maybe it was time to steer things to that direction.

"Hey, Shane?" I asked, lightly drumming my fingers on the counter.

"Hmm?"

"Why do you drink the coffee that you do?"

He looked up, slightly confused at my random question, raising an eyebrow.

"Just asking," I said, shrugging my shoulders slightly.

"I don't really know," he said, and he looked deep in thought. "My first ever trip to Starbucks was years ago. If I remember right, I think it was with my dad. He asked me what I wanted, and I remember being really confused. I just wanted a plain coffee, no random stuff in it, so I asked for a latte. I think it was probably the first time I had tried coffee, and I found it really bitter so I added a ton of sugar to it so it would taste slightly better. The next couple of times I went, I messed around with it a bit. I think I finally decided on adding cinnamon because I was completely confused on how to make a bitter cup of coffee have any other taste without ruining all my teeth." He paused in his story to take a sip of the coffee that he had been describing in so much detail before continuing. "Cause it would be a shame to mar this perfect smile," he added self-deprecatingly.

I rolled my eyes but remained quiet.

"It worked perfectly. The cinnamon, that is. Everything just balanced out."

I took another sip of my coffee, my mind taking me back to the summer I met Mitchie at Camp Rock. Shane had been very sulky and resentful the first time I had met him. The media was always stirring things up in his life, whether it was how he had stormed off a set or who his latest girlfriend was. I couldn't blame him for being angry about that.

"What made you try out so many different things though?" I asked.

He looked up at me and frowned slightly. "I was confused, I guess. I didn't know what would taste good."

He looked deep in thought so I decided not to interrupt him. "I guess I was just generally confused then."

"About the label?" I asked curiously.

"Yeah, I guess. The label. The band. My life in general." Then he smiled. "But then I met Mitchie."

I smiled, shaking my head at him. "You might have been confused but it seems like you had a few constants in your life. Nate and Jason for one. And even your coffee has been a constant, because you didn't change it once you found what you liked. I guess that shows your dedication in a way to things you care about. Like your music. And Mitchie." I paused thinking about their relationship. "I guess she's the sweet part of your life, huh?"

He looked at me, taking into account what I'd said and he nodded slightly, the small smile on his lips widening a little at the mention of his girlfriend.

"Maybe you're right." He sighed. "Man, you ever think about telling anyone that we had a conversation like this, I might have to kill you."

"Please! As if I would ever admit that I had an actual conversation with Shane Gray without calling him a jerk!" I replied.

He burst out laughing. "Come on then, Cait. I'm thinking pancakes for breakfast."

Fifteen minutes later, the entire kitchen was covered in flour, sugar and egg. Shane now looked as though he had aged 20 years because of the flour in his hair and people might think I had dandruff at the rate the sugar was falling out of my hair with every shake of my head.

"Do I want to know what went on here?" An amused voice said from the doorway. Shane and I looked up to see Nate in the doorway biting his lip to keep from smiling.

"Nate! Me and Cait here think you should make us pancakes for breakfast," Shane said, without a moment's hesitation.

"Really? And why should I do that?"

Shane looked at me and grinned. I narrowed my eyes at him. He was definitely up to something and whatever it was, I doubted the result would in any way favour me.

"Because my sister has a crush on you!" Shane blurted out, discreetly winking at me. I forced myself to not blush.

Nate raised an eyebrow before slowly making his way towards the fridge. "Shane, you don't have a sister."

Shane smiled smugly as Nate began to pull out the ingredients for pancakes. "That's what you think."

I think Nate had already given up at that point and when I got up from my position on the floor to sit at the counter again I kicked Shane's shin. He glared at me before rubbing it but even he didn't miss the slight smile that was on my face because he referred to me as his sister.

Shane might believe that his choice of coffee symbolised the confusion in his life at the time that he had begun to drink it, but I disagree. Shane's latte was just like him and I could see it more clearly now. He was still slightly bitter, probably because of the whole playing their own music thing but the cinnamon represented the excitement that was a huge part of Shane and his life. And the sugar fit too, because underneath all of it, he was a genuinely sweet guy. And I was incredibly lucky to have someone like that consider me to be his sister.


	3. Laughter on Tuesday

Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Camp Rock or Starbucks.

AN: This is Chapter 3 of '**Coffee**' and its to Prompt no. 27 - **Laughter **and its Mitchie's chapter. Thanks once again to all those who reviewed/ favourited/ alerted this story, it really means a lot.

So **LaPaige** mentioned that she hates coffee so because of that and because she came up with this whole incredible '101 Prompts Challenge' and always reviews, this chapter is dedicated to her...I hope you like hot chocolate, Paige! :D

Once again, a huge thanks to **suburbs** for being such an amazing beta!

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**Chapter 3: Laughter on Tuesday**

I had decided to meet up with Mitchie on Tuesday around mid-morning. I had thought that it wouldn't be fair to wake her up at the crack of dawn too…and the fact that Mitchie was already meeting Shane for breakfast had nothing to do with it. I wasn't dreading today at all; in fact, I was looking forward to it. I needed to have serious words with Mitchie; she couldn't keep telling the whole world that I liked Nate!

Anyway, that's why at the moment, I'm standing in what is probably the longest queue I've ever seen in Starbucks, trying to get myself and Mitchie a hot chocolate before I turn up at her apartment. It gave me a couple of minutes to think about hot chocolates. Unlike Shane's drink, I had tried a hot chocolate before so I knew what to expect. What I was having trouble with, though, was making the connection between hot chocolate and Mitchie. Especially the way she always had it – with cream and two sugars.

I stifled a chuckle. Shane had gone out of his way to make sure he wasn't having too much sugar with his coffee and his girlfriend added sugar to hot chocolates! I smiled just thinking about yesterday with Shane. I had so much fun and even better, I was able to at least make a vague connection between Shane and his latte. I had actually been surprised that he had opened up to me in the way that he had. I really hadn't been expecting to have a heart-to-heart conversation with Shane Gray in the early hours of the morning.

Fifteen minutes later, having finally managed to get the hot chocolates I pulled out of the parking lot without any accidents and found myself on the way to Mitchie's apartment. I made it there much quicker than I had on my way to Shane's not having hit any traffic along the way.

Struggling with the two cups in my hand, I managed to make it to the door, not sure exactly what I was going to do when I got there. Luckily right when I arrived it opened and a young guy stood back to let me through.

"Thank you so much," I said, giving him a small smile. I began to make my way up the stairs and as soon as I had arrived at Mitchie's door, I kicked the door three times as way of knocking. I heard a scuffling noise on the other side of the door before it opened revealing Shane Gray.

I raised an eyebrow at him as he took the cups from my hands and walked inside to place them on the table.

"Hey Shane, where's Mitchie?" I asked, as I couldn't see any sign of her in the apartment.

He grinned. "You know her next door neighbour? Sarah?"

I nodded immediately. "The slightly eccentric one?"

Shane let out a little laugh. "Yep, that's her. Well, I think she was trying to cook something but it didn't quite work out, so she came over begging Mitchie for help. Mitchie knew you would be over soon so she asked me to hang around to open the door."

"Thanks Shane," I laughed lightly. "I'm here now, so you can go if you want." I remembered that he, Nate and Jason had a meeting with their record label. "You have a meeting, don't you?"

"Yeah, I should make a move. How did you know I had a meeting?" he asked, looking slightly confused.

"Nate mentioned it yesterday," I replied, trying to sound casual.

Shane smirked at me, as I'd expected. "He did, did he?"

"Shut up, Gray, or that conversation we had yesterday might just work its way into a conversation that I'm having with Mitchie."

He narrowed his eyes at me. "Fine, I'm going." He turned to leave, and as he walked past me, he did something that surprised me. He gave me a quick hug before opening the door and letting himself out, whilst I was still standing there frozen.

I quickly recovered when I heard a knock on the door and I opened it to see Mitchie in a top covered in tomato sauce. "What –" I was cut off by Mitchie.

"Don't ask, Caity. I'm just going to change my top, I'll be with you in two secs," she called, already half way to her room.

I looked around the living room that I was standing in. I would be moving in with Mitchie in a couple of weeks. The lease for the apartment that I had been renting was now up and Mitchie had been begging me to move in with her ever since she moved three months ago. I had called her as soon as I had found out about my apartment and she had literally screamed so loud I don't think I needed the phone to hear her. My left ear hasn't been the same since.

"Looking around your new home, Caity?" I heard Mitchie ask so I turned around to face her.

"Yeah, I can't wait to move in!" I tried to keep the excitement in my voice down – I didn't want to damage my right ear as well.

"Are those for us?" she asked, spotting the cups that Shane had left on the table.

I nodded before picking them up and passing one to her. Immediately, she opened it and added two sachets of sugar and I followed suit, wincing a little as I added more sugar to the already sweet drink. She made her way over to the couches and sat down onto one of them, pulling her feet up with her.

"Did you sort out your neighbour's emergency, then?" I asked as I sat down opposite her.

She laughed. "Did you not see the sauce on my t-shirt? You'll have plenty of that to look forward to," she added, just as I raised my eyebrow.

"Mitch, have you forgotten –"

I was cut off by her laughter. It was a well known fact that if you could, you should avoid the words Caitlyn and kitchen in the same sentence.

"I totally forgot about that! I still can't believe you had to call the fire department when you tried to make pasta the first time!" She collapsed into another bout of giggles. Even though I should have been trying to look mad at her, I couldn't help myself and soon, we were both trying to hold our drinks upright as we laughed.

As soon as our giggles subsided, I took a sip of my drink. I could taste the chocolate and the whipped cream which I was sure had melted by now, but it was all slightly over powered by the two sugars that I had added to it. It was a very kiddie drink and knowing that I would have to start a conversation about it myself, I took another sip before placing my cup onto the coffee table in front of me.

"Mitch? When did you first have a hot chocolate?" I was glad that I had put my cup down, as Mitchie collapsed into another fit of giggles.

"Caity, that was a really random question, even for you!" She said.

I shrugged, somewhat defensively. "Just asking!"

She finally stopped her laughter. "When I was younger, like maybe around six, my Gran used to make it for me just before bed when I stayed over at her house," she answered, shrugging slightly herself. "I've loved it ever since and it reminds me of her so I always drink it."

Well, that much made sense. Family had always been really important to Mitchie, that was how she had been brought up, and I knew how close she had been to her Gran. But I still didn't get the two sugars. Starbucks' Hot Chocolate was generally quite a sweet drink. I knew Mitchie didn't really have that much of a sweet tooth, which baffled me even more.

"But it's really sweet, Mitch. How can you have it with so many sugars?" I continued my questioning.

She giggled softly before answering. "My Gran used to believe that kids should always have something sweet before going to bed because that meant they would have sweet dreams," she said, smiling slightly. "Of course, then she would make us brush our teeth for five minutes," she added.

"Even now when I have a bad dream, I wake up and make myself a sweet hot chocolate," she finished, taking a sip of the drink she had been talking about.

I nodded, but something still wasn't right. How did a sweet hot chocolate show Mitchie's personality? And as soon as I asked myself the question, I could almost hear the answer in my head.

_"I guess she's the sweet part of your life, huh?"_

I hit my head lightly on the couch. I had even said it myself to Shane yesterday. Mitchie Torres was the sweet thing in _everyone's_ life. You could always count on her to cheer you up and make you laugh if you were down in the dumps. I guess in a weird way you could also count on hot chocolates since they made a great comfort drink. In fact, thinking about it now, when my first boyfriend had broken up with me, I had come over to Mitchie's and she had welcomed me in with open arms and made me a hot chocolate.

I had yet to meet someone that didn't like hot chocolates, and Mitchie was sort of a hot chocolate personified – she was sweet, warm and everyone liked her. And then I immediately felt guilty. I hadn't told her how much I appreciated her. Not once had I ever said thank you to her for being such an amazing friend.

"Why so deep in thought, Caitlyn?" Mitchie asked me, cutting into my thoughts.

"I was just thinking. I never said thank you for cheering me up when Sam broke up with me," I said.

She raised an eyebrow. "Cait, that was ages ago. And you don't ever have to thank me, I'm your best friend and I know you'd do the same for me," she said.

I took another sip of the hot chocolate. "Yeah, but I don't tell you that enough, and I just needed to say it. You can act like you didn't hear it if it makes you uncomfortable," I said, wanting to finish this conversation as soon as possible.

She took a sip of her drink before placing the cup back onto the table. "So how was yesterday at Shane's then?" she asked.

I grinned. I loved my best friend. "We got Nate to make pancakes for us," I said, smile still on my face as I thought back to the mess that we had left the kitchen in. Mitchie smirked at me and I knew exactly what her next sentence was going to be.

"So when are you going to tell Nate?"

Yep, I was right. "Mitchie, I don't know. I haven't really thought about whether or not I do want to tell him."

"Well, if you do, then we can triple date!"

I burst out laughing. "Triple date? Is that even a term?" I asked and without waiting for an answer, I carried on. "And when did Tess and Jason get together? And why didn't I know about it?" I asked, recalling the way Tess and Jason had been acting the day before yesterday.

"I think they got together a few days ago," Mitchie replied. "I think he'll be good for her."

I agreed. Tess needed someone like Jason in her life. I figured I'd get the full story from Tess herself when I met up with her.

I looked over at Mitchie just in time to see her start laughing again. "We could have a triple wedding!" she exclaimed, before sliding off the couch and laughing on the floor.

I sighed looking at her and it wasn't long before I had joined her on the floor, tears rolling down my cheeks as Mitchie started remembering some of the stupid things we had done together over the years.

Mitchie was the best friend I had ever had and I could definitely see the connection between Mitchie and a hot chocolate. Everyone loved Mitchie and she could always bring a smile to your face. If I was ever in need of comfort, Mitchie would be the first person I would go to. And she would be there with her hot chocolate in hand.


	4. Spinning on Wednesday

Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Camp Rock or Starbucks.

AN: So this is Chapter 4 and it is **Jason's** chapter. It's to prompt 45. - **Spinning**, which is random but I think it's very Jason. Thank you to all of you who have been reviewing...I got super excited because this story has the most reviews out of all of my stories!

Once again, a huge thanks to **suburbs **for being the amazing beta that she is and for dedicating her one-shot entitled 'Poetry' (which is also a response to the prompts) to me! Please check it out...her stuff is absolutely amazing!

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**Chapter 4: Spinning on Wednesday**

Wednesday morning I was back in Starbucks waiting in the queue. I was beginning to get sick of this place as I had been there every day since Sunday. I think I was freaking out the poor people behind the counter because I never ordered the same thing twice. I sighed as I thought about how many people I still had left in this so called challenge that Nate had set me, but the first two had gone so well that I immediately brightened up. Not that I would ever admit it to Nate but I was actually really enjoying myself trying to complete this 'challenge.'

I finally made it to the front of the queue and ordered two caramel frappuccinos. I shivered taking a glance through the window. It was cold outside but Jason drank frappuccinos in any kind of weather. I made sure to grab a handful of napkins so that my hands wouldn't feel numb after taking the freezing cups.

I could see the guy behind me in the queue giving me strange looks. I suppose it was only to be expected as I was ordering a frappucino in winter. As soon as I took the cups in my hands, I started walking faster – the quicker I got to my car, the sooner I could put these cups down. I got into the car, noticing the caramel swirls and the whipped cream that was on both frappuccinos and started the car. In no time at all, I was driving along the very familiar route to Shane, Nate and Jason's place.

I could feel a grin on my face as I thought about Jason. The boy was in for a grilling from yours truly. I still couldn't believe he had gotten together with Tess and not told me. I smiled wistfully as I thought about how much he had changed. When I had first met him, he had been a naïve, sweet, polite young boy. Not to say he wasn't still sweet or polite, but he had grown up. He wasn't the airhead that everyone had assumed him to be but he still had a touch of innocence that I doubted he would ever outgrow.

I pulled into the driveway, but Shane's car wasn't in sight today. Instead I parked behind Nate's car trying not to feel too excited that I would probably get to spend time with him as well as Jason. I made my way up to the door, trying to minimize my contact with the cups. I was now a pro at this whole routine so I used my elbow to ring the doorbell like I had the last time I had been here. The door swung open barely two seconds later and Nate went to take the cups from my hand.

"Caitlyn, these are freezing!"

I rolled my eyes. "Nate, they're frappuccinos! Obviously they're cold!" I said, as I began to follow him into the living room.

He placed some paper towels on the coffee table before putting the cups onto them and then sat down onto one of the couches. I had already sat down and was watching him in amusement. I raised an eyebrow in question as he sat down.

"It's hard to get marks off that coffee table," he said, sounding slightly defensive. "Jason!" he called out in general direction of the door, before turning to look at me with a smile on his lips.

"So, how's the challenge going then Caitlyn?" he said, a smirk now playing on his lips.

I groaned inwardly. I had to stop noticing things about his lips!

"It's going fine actually," I said, hoping to catch him off guard.

"I knew you'd say that. You'd probably say that even if it wasn't though," he said, and I frowned. How did he know me so well?

"I pay attention, Caitlyn. We've been over this," he said with a slight shake of his head. Okay, was this guy now also a mind reader?

"How did you know what I was thinking?" I asked, determined to find out.

He grinned. "Simple, I know you better than you think I do."

Before I could respond, I heard loud footsteps coming down the stairs and almost immediately the living room door swung open and Jason came bounding in. I stood up to greet him and found myself trapped in a bone crushing hug.

"Caity, it's so good to see you!" he exclaimed and I could hear the excitement in his voice.

"Good…see…too," was all I managed to say. Jason realised how tight he was holding me and immediately let go and grinned sheepishly.

"Sorry, I tend to get carried away with hugs," he said, as he rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

I grinned at him. "I think everyone knows that Jase," I said, trying to reassure him he hadn't permanently injured me. "It's part of what we love about you."

"Yeah, that's what Tess said - OW!"

Yeah, that 'ow' was because I punched his arm. I rolled my eyes, and grabbed a cushion from the couch and began to hit him with it.

"Ow, Caity, what are you hitting me for?" he said, moving around the room whilst trying to dodge the cushion. I could hear Nate laughing behind me.

"You – didn't – tell – me – about – Tess!" I said, each word accompanied by a blow from my cushion. I was now standing on top of the couch and Jason was crouching down next to me, his arms trying to cover his hair. Nate was still laughing and I shot him a glare and he shut up. For about two seconds before bursting out laughing again.

"I'm sorry, Caity," I heard Jason mumble, lifting his head up to look at me. I sighed as I dropped the cushion and sat down on the couch next to him. Nate had stopped laughing and I looked over at him only to find that he was staring at me intently. I matched his gaze, trying to count the colours in his eyes and figure out why he was looking at me like that but I blinked and he looked away.

"Er, if you'll excuse me, inspiration calls," he said as he stood up.

I looked at him, confused. "Inspiration calls from watching me beat up Jason?" I asked.

He avoided my gaze and we both ignored Jason's attempt at protesting. "Er, something like that," he mumbled before walking out of the room. My mind was spinning. What had that been about?

I sighed mentally before turning to look at Jason who pulled a cushion out from behind him and stuck it in front of his face. I grinned guiltily and put my cushion down. "I'm sorry, Jason. That won't happen again," I said gesturing to the cushion.

He put his cushion down and I reached for the frappuccinos holding one out to him.

"Peace offering?" I asked as I watched his face light up.

He took a long sip from his cup, and I copied him. I shivered. It was still cold, even though it had been sitting out for quite some time, but I couldn't help but take another sip. It was divine and absolutely addictive. I watched as Jason took the straw out of his drink and opened the cup, using the straw to try and finish the whipped cream first. It didn't work particularly well and he soon covered it back up and carried on drinking through the straw.

I could taste the caramel syrup as an undertone, the cold coffee and cream making up most of it but as I drank more, the more I fell in love with it. It was a really rich and heavy drink and I knew I wouldn't be hungry for ages after.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Tess, Caitlyn," Jason said.

I smiled at him. "I'm sorry too. I really shouldn't have hit you. I think I overreacted slightly," I said, taking another sip of my drink.

He raised an eyebrow at me and I was once again struck by how he had grown up. "Only slightly?" he asked, small smile on his face.

I grinned. "Don't worry about it Jase! I'll just get the details from Tess when I see her," I said, watching in mild satisfaction as he spluttered.

"Yeah, you do that. Just don't talk about it with me," he said, wincing slightly and as I still felt bad about attacking him with the cushion, I dropped the subject.

I took another sip of my drink. "Jason, what do you like about caramel frappuccinos?" I asked, eager to find out the choice behind this amazing drink.

"They're yummy," he said, sounding once again, like a child. I sighed. This was going to be harder than I thought.

"Okay, but what specifically?" I tried, probing a bit further.

"They make me feel like a kid again," he said and I couldn't help but smile. I still felt slightly confused and my mind was spinning slightly from all the different ideas I was tossing around, but the combination of Jason and this yummy drink made me feel happy.

"But why do you want to feel like a kid again? I mean, I like acting childish, sure, but I wouldn't want to go through being a kid all over again," I said to him, trying to understand his thought process.

He shook his head. "Yeah, you do act childish sometimes but you don't act like a kid anymore," he said. Noticing the confused look on my face, he carried on. "Like have you ever stopped thinking about what people think about you? Ever jumped in puddles? Started spinning around so much that you feel really dizzy but you want to carry on spinning around anyway. And then you stop and you feel sick and all you want is a sip of your favourite milkshake before you start again," he said, staring at the wall opposite him, lost in thought.

I was speechless. I didn't know that Jason could be so thoughtful and so childish at the same time. I couldn't bring myself to say anything so I took another sip of my drink. Jason stood up and began moving the coffee table out of the way, creating a huge space in the centre of the room.

"Jason, what are you doing?" I asked, thoroughly bewildered. He held his hand out, and as soon I grasped it he pulled me up into a standing position.

"You, Caitlyn Gellar, are going to spin," he stated.

I laughed. "I'd feel stupid."

"I'll do it with you," he said and immediately started spinning around in circles. He stopped when he realised I hadn't joined in. He came and stood behind me and placing his hands on my shoulders, tried to make me spin around**.** I let him push me around a little bit before deciding that I may as well help him out. After all, there wasn't anyone here apart from me and Jason. I started out slowly but I soon put my arms out and started to pick up speed, spinning around on the spot. I could vaguely make out that Jason had joined in and I couldn't stop the giggles that escaped my lips.

I carried on spinning until I really couldn't take it anymore.I stopped, almost ready to collapse onto the couch when Jason passed me my drink. I took more than a few sips from it, now feeling slightly thirsty and loved the sweet, creamy, smooth taste that it left in my mouth.

I put the drink down onto the floor so that it was out of the way and I didn't even need prompting from Jason to start spinning again. I was giggling like a little girl, and I felt so free, loving the feeling of the air rushing around me. When the dizziness began to affect me, I stopped and unable to stand I laid down on the floor as Jason joined me. I was still laughing and I looked over at him to see that he had a small, content smile playing on his lips.

I closed my eyes and I could see the caramel swirls spinning in my head as Jason's voice cut into my thoughts.

"It's weird because I would never have been allowed a frappuccino when I was a kid."

I laughed as I thought about Jason's drink. It was rich and smooth and my first thought would be that it linked to someone who had a lavish lifestyle, someone decadent. But then I realised that it was perfect for Jason. It was almost like a milkshake or dessert that a kid would order, but the coffee made it just a little bit grown up, like Jason. He was laidback, carefree and childlike, but at the same time mature and calm. Even though he had matured, he still had a childishness that would always be a part of him. He didn't care the drinking a frappuccino might not be good for you all the time. He just wanted to stay like the kid inside of him.


	5. Disappointment on Thursday

Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Camp Rock or Starbucks.

AN: This is Chapter 5 - **Tess's** chapter and its to the prompt no.40 - **Disappointment.** Thanks to all of you for reading/reviewing/favouriting/alerting! The next chapter will be Nate's followed by one more after that. I'm not too sure how soon I will be able to update after this one which is partly why this update is so soon.

Ok, for some shameless advertising, I co-wrote a one-shot with **LaPaige** entitled **'You Belong With Me'** - it's up on her profile and you should read it if you want to know what happens when Mitchie crashes Shane's wedding...and while you're there you should also check out LaPaige's other stuff because she's great!

Once, again a huge thank you to **suburbs** for being such an amazing beta.

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**Chapter 5: Disappointment on Thursday**

Thursday morning started out horribly. I woke up late and as soon as I looked out of the window, I groaned. It was pouring. I was supposed to be meeting Tess quite early in the morning because she had a meeting at lunch**, **but there was no way I could make it now. I looked around for my phone, finally finding it underneath my pillow and searched through the contacts list to find Tess.

She picked up after the second ring and I quickly explained the situation to her. She was surprisingly calm and she suggested that she could meet me after her meeting was over, sensing that I really wanted to see her today. I crawled back into bed since I no longer needed to be up early and pulled the duvet up to my chin.

It was strange how Tess and I had gone from being enemies to what could be called good friends. I had never particularly got along with her at Camp Rock, especially after she had framed Mitchie and I for stealing her bracelet. But when she told Brown what she had done, there was a part of me that respected her for telling the truth. It takes courage to admit when you're wrong, so I decided maybe there was more to Tess than I had previously thought.

We had all become sort of friends after that, and now, aside from Mitchie, Tess was probably my best girl friend. I'm not saying we have sleepovers and do each others' hair, but we had learned to be friends in our own weird way. We still fought every once in awhile, but I could count on Tess to be there if I needed her.

Over the years, Tess had broken out from under her mother's shadow and had established herself as her own person. She had developed her own style as a musician and singer, and I had worked with her quite a few times on her albums. Shockingly, we had managed to do it without wanting to kill each other.

I eventually rolled out of bed, knowing I wasn't actually going to go back to sleep. After a shower and a quick breakfast I decided to start packing my stuff up for when I moved to Mitchie's. I carried on packing until I heard my phone ring, glancing at caller ID before answering.

"Hey Tess, are you done?"

"Yep, I'm on my way to Starbucks. Do you want me to order for you?"

"Yeah, just get me whatever you're getting yourself and I'll be there in 10."

"Okay, bye!"

I snapped my phone shut, pulled my shoes and coat on and left the apartment. Ten minutes later, I was opening the door to Starbucks and caught sight of Tess sitting at one of the tables towards the back. She already had our coffee, so I walked over to join her.

"Hey, Tess."

She looked up at me and grinned.

"Ugh, do you have to sit with me, Gellar?" she asked, and I knew she was in her 'let's see what it takes to wind up Caitlyn' mood.

"No, but you know you'd die if I didn't," I said, grinning as I sat down.

Tess pushed over a cup of coffee towards me and I eyed it warily. Tess noticed of course, and she smiled.

"So since when have me and you drunk the same type of coffee?" She asked.

I froze. How was I supposed to answer that? "I just figured it would be easier for you to order." That sounded believable.

Tess nodded and passed me some sugar. I watched as she added one sachet to her coffee. Only one? How was I supposed to drink this with only one sugar? From what I had heard, an espresso macchiato was very intense with strong coffee and foamed milk. I watched as Tess took a sip of her coffee and reluctantly, I did the same, closing my eyes first as if that would change the taste**.**

I had to force myself to swallow it and when I opened my eyes, I saw Tess laughing at me. The drink was very bitter – it was a relief when I felt the foamed milk but the sugar I had added to it wasn't strong enough. I watched Tess take another sip and I put my cup down onto the table.

"How do you drink that?" I demanded.

She shrugged. "You get used to it. Anyway, do you want to tell me why my boyfriend had a bruise on his arm yesterday after he met you?"

I gasped. "No way, how did he get a bruise? I didn't hit him that hard – and wait a second did you just say boyfriend?"

She blushed. "I was going to tell you Cait."

I grinned. "Uh huh, I'm sure you were. I want details!"

She took another sip of her coffee and I followed suit, still not enjoying it. "We'd been spending a lot of time together I guess. Especially after that duet I did with Connect 3. I think I first realised I liked him when I noticed I could have a conversation about my Mom with him without crying," she said smiling. Normally I would have laughed at her for admitting the crying thing but with TJ Tyler, things were always different. The woman could make a grown man cry like a baby with a single glance.

"We only got together a week ago, so it's not like we were hiding it from you. In fact, I think Sunday was when we went public."

"What about the press?" I asked. Surely they would want to know if another of Connect 3 was off the market, especially if he was dating _The Tess Tyler_. Only don't tell her I said 'The Tess Tyler.'

"We don't mind if they know. It's bound to come out anyway," she said shrugging slightly.

"I'm really happy for you guys. I think you'll be good for each other," I said, seriously.

I took another sip of my coffee and Tess burst out laughing at the look on my face. "How did you get used to it?" I asked. "And why did you even start having it?" I added, remembering the whole reason why I was drinking this coffee.

"My mom used to make me. When I wanted to order a hot chocolate like all the other kids, she told me it had too many calories and I would be a disappointment to her if I didn't have the same drink she did." She stopped to take another sip and I could feel myself getting angry at TJ Tyler.

"I loved trying to drink it after a bit because I wanted to be exactly like my Mom. I wanted her to be proud of me and I didn't want to disappoint her." She smiled bitterly – a little like her coffee.

"Does she still have her coffee exactly like this?" I asked.

"Not exactly. She doesn't add the sugar. I only started doing that myself just recently," she said. I waited for her to continue but she didn't.

"Why did you start adding the sugar?"

"Because I wanted to prove I didn't have to be exactly like Mom to be successful. If I changed little things…well, that might be enough." She paused to take another sip of her coffee. "It was Jason who told me to start small. He believes in me, so he makes it seem easy," she added and I smiled at how right I had been yesterday – Jason had really grown up.

"Anyway, that's enough about my coffee. What I want to know is does Nate know you like him?"

I glared at her. "How did you know?"

"I didn't," she said, "but thanks for letting me know!" She winked at me.

I rolled my eyes. "Anyway, I'm sure you aren't really a disappointment to your mother Tess," I said trying to change the subject.

She sighed. "I am, Caitlyn. When I was exactly like her and let her manage my life, I was the best daughter in the world. Then I started to make my own choices, and I became the biggest disappointment ever. Even if she saw that I'd started adding sugar to my coffee, she'd probably be disappointed."

I didn't know what to say to her. Even though we were pretty good friends, we didn't do serious conversations very often.

"Well, I know one thing for sure. You will never be a disappointment to me, Jason or any of us," I said, hoping to cheer her up slightly.

She smiled and wiped away the lone tear that was rolling down her cheek. "Thanks, Caitlyn."

"No problem!" I said cheerfully, trying to brighten up the conversation.

I noticed the grin on her face and paused. "Of course, to cheer me up, you should come shopping with me so I can dress you up for your date with Nate tomorrow."

I laughed. "Tess, I don't have a date with Nate tomorrow. It's just two friends meeting up," I insisted.

She raised an eyebrow. "Oh yeah? And what exactly are you planning to do?"

"Have coffee," I stated and she burst out laughing.

"Oh, Caitlyn, don't you see? This is the perfect opportunity for you to dress up and getNate to notice you!"

I glared at her hoping she would forget this idea.

"Oh, come on Caitlyn, please!"

"Fine, but I'll decide whether or not to wear it tomorrow," I said, in defeat.

She grinned and stood up leading the way out of the coffee shop and I followed, thinking about her coffee. Tess had always wanted to be like her mother, partly because her mom expected it of her. What kind of a woman does that to her child? I guess her coffee choice said it all– someone who was bitter with no sign of sweetness at all. But that wasn't who Tess was, and the changes that Tess had begun to make showed that – even adding just a little sugar to her coffee. I guess it was her way of proving that she did have a sweet side; it just took her a long time to display it. But now that she had Jason, I think we were all going to be seeing more of this sweeter Tess.


	6. Independence on Friday

Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Camp Rock or Starbucks.

AN: This is the second to last chapter. The next and final chapter won't be up until the weekend at least because I broke my promise - to make sure that I had sent the next chapter to my beta before I posted one up. I just didn't want to leave it too long for an update...so hopefully, this story should be finished by this weekend.

Anyway, this one is to prompt no. 94 - **Independence** and it is the one everyone has been waiting for - **Nate's **chapter. There will be one chapter after this and that's it. Thanks to everyone for reading/reviewing/favouriting/alerting so far.

Something I forgot to mention last time - Thank you to **LaPaige** for her help with me trying to figure out what Caitlyn and Tess's relationship would be like - I'm glad you all liked how it was portrayed and it couldn't have been done without Paige.

A huge thanks to **suburbs **for being such a great beta and for really encouraging me with my writing.

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**Chapter 6: Independence on Friday**

I awoke very early on Friday morning, barely having had any sleep at all. I'd spent most of the night tossing and turning because my stomach had been turned into a country for butterflies. I couldn't believe I was so excited and nervous at the same time about spending the day with Nate.

I looked at my alarm clock and noticed it was only half past six. There was no way I was going to be getting any more sleep so I dragged myself out of bed. I had packed up most of my stuff, even though I still had a few days before I had to move out. I decided to drop some things off at Mitchie's on my way to Nate's to make the move next week slightly easier. After looking at my closet, I put on the outfit that Tess had bought me yesterday because she had gone for something that was actually me. But it wasn't like Nate would know it was new, right?

At seven I had finished loading my car and was on the way to Mitchie's. I sent her a quick text before I started driving, knowing it would wake her up because she was such a light sleeper. Sure enough, when I got to Mitchie's fifteen minutes later, she was standing outside so she could help me unload. I grabbed the boxes from the boot while she grabbed the ones in the back seat. Luckily, I had decided to go for the lightest boxes today, saving the heavier ones for when I had more help so we were finished in that one trip. By the time I had put the last box in my new room, Mitchie had collapsed on the couch.

"Mitchie, it wasn't that much work!" I exclaimed as she sat up.

"I know but it's early! And I went to sleep early because I knew you were going to turn up because Tess called me last night and told me you were meeting Nate today," she said in one breath.

I took a seat opposite her and saw the smirk on her face. I swear she was spending too much time with Shane – it was like that smirk was ever present on her face now.

"I'm so nervous, Mitchie," I said, voicing my thoughts for the first time. "What if I say something stupid? What if I tell him I like him?"

Mitchie smiled at me reassuringly. "Cait, I don't think Nate would ever think anything you said was stupid. And you just have to act like you havealways done with him, and he won't know how you feel about him." She paused before adding, "Although, you know if you did tell him then everything would be out in the open," she finished.

I had already started shaking my head. "There is no way Nate is going to find out, Mitchie," I said.

"But what if he feels -"

"He doesn't feel the same. I just need to get over him and then everything will be fine."

Mitchie looked slightly disappointed but smiled nonetheless. "You better get going then, Cait," she said, gesturing to the clock.

I sighed. "If you wanted to kick me out, Mitchie, you just had to say so!" I stuck my tongue out at her as I let myself out of her apartment and I heard her burst into laughter.

I started the car and made my way to Starbucks, relishing the fact that this was the last time I would have to do that for some time. This Sunday, for our usual get together, we were meeting at Mitchie's so everyone could help me get settled.

I pulled into my usual parking spot outside Starbucks and made my way into the café. Surprised by the fact that there was no queue, I made my way to the counter and ordered two cappuccinos. The order took no time at all and I soon found myself leaving, holding the two cups in my hands. They felt a lot lighter than usual cups of coffee but I guess that was because they were mostly milk foam.

I didn't hit any traffic on the way to Nate's house even though I had hoped for some traffic to give me time to settle the butterflies in my stomach. Barely ten minutes later, I pulled into the driveway and got out of the car taking the coffees with me. The door opened before I got to it and Shane stepped out to take the coffees from my hands.

"How did you know I was here?" I asked as I followed him through the door and into the kitchen.

"I didn't, I was just about to go and see Mitchie," he said, grinning at me, and fiddling with his car keys.

"So how have you been, Cait? Nervous about today?" He asked, and as predicted, the smirk was on his face.

"I've been fine, and no, why should I be?" I said, now standing against the worktop.

He raised an eyebrow. "You should know I've already spoken to Mitchie."

I groaned. "My best friend sucks."

He chuckled, before looking at me strangely. "Just… be yourself, Cait. There's no need to change anything about you and…N- people like you just the way you are."

I looked at him and was just about to ask what he had meant when he raised his hand in farewell and walked out of the house. As soon as I heard the door close, I heard footsteps on the stairs and seconds later Nate walked into the kitchen. I sucked in a breath.

"Hey Caitlyn," he said walking over to me and giving me a hug. I sighed. This guy gave the greatest hugs and that meant something coming from me because I really didn't like to hug that much.

"Is that a new outfit?" My mouth dropped open in shock. I nodded, still not believing that he actually noticed.

"It looks really good on you," he said, and I couldn't control the slight blush that covered my cheeks.

He let go of me slowly and turned to sit at the breakfast bar. I walked over to sit opposite him and was reminded of my very first attempt at this challenge – with Shane in this very same kitchen and now I was at the last part of the challenge.

I watched as Nate took both cups and added one sugar to each one. He looked up at me whilst smiling. "How did the challenge go then, Caitlyn?"

"It was really good – and I'm not just saying that," I replied.

He took a sip of his coffee and passed the other cup to me. "So do you want me to pretend that I don't know what you're doing? Or do you want to talk about everyone else's coffees first?"

I thought about it and realized that I wanted to know about his coffee first so I pulled the cup towards me and took a sip. It was really hot, almost burning and I knew that was because the foam kept the heat in. I could taste the strong undercurrent of coffee accompanied bythe taste of milk and the foam that sat on the top.

"So when did you first try a cappuccino?" I asked, and he seemed to get my message straight away.

"I think it was after Connect 3 got signed. We had all these random meetings with people that we didn't really know then, and we were always asked if we wanted to drink something so I started getting cappuccinos." He stopped to take a sip of his coffee.

"But you were quite young then. How did you like it?" I asked thinking about how old Nate would have been when Connect 3 got signed.

"I didn't really at first but I got used to it really quickly. And it helped me stay up when we had concerts because otherwise I used to fall asleep really quickly," he explained. "I felt really professional and independent drinking my coffee, especially next to Jason drinking his frappuccino," he added.

I don't know why but the word 'independent' caught my attention. "You'vealways had to be pretty independent though, haven't you? Like when you first got signed and then when Shane wasn't really himself?" I asked. I was sure Nate had more to do with the technical side of things than Shane and Jason did.

He shrugged slightly before answering. "I guess. I mean I've always been careful on what to sign and stuff like that because that's how you should be right?"

I grinned. Nate had been much easier to analyse than I thought. "I'm done, want to hear the analysis?" I asked.

He looked surprised. "Go on then."

"I'll go through everyone else's first and leave yours until the end," I said and he nodded.

I took a sip of my coffee before starting. Strangely, it was beginning to grow on me. "We'll start with Shane. A latte with a shot of cinnamon and one sugar. Slightly bitter because he wasn't able to do what he wanted at certain points in his career. The cinnamon adds the bit of excitement Shane always cravesand the sugar not only represents Mitchie but the fact that even though he tries not to be, he is still a sweet guy. Most of the time," I added as an afterthought.

Nate smiled. "You got Shane perfectly. Who's next?"

I grinned at the fact that he agreed with me. "My best friend, Mitchie. Hot chocolate with two sugars, which I found out remind her of her grandmother. Mitchie Torres is the sweet thing in everyone's life, always there if you need her. And like a hot chocolate, there is something about her that is really comforting. Everyone loves hot chocolates and everyone loves Mitchie," I finished, smiling at the thought of Mitchie's sweet hot chocolate.

He grinned. "You did better with that one than I did. I didn't link the hot chocolate and Mitchie to comfort food."

"That's because you're a guy," I said matter-of-factly.

He smiled and gestured for me to continue.

"Jason. A caramel frappuccino, even in winter. It's almost like a kid**'s** drink but with a touch of adult because of the coffee. It's just like him – his was probably the easiest."

He laughed. "I agree**;** it was definitely the easiest to figure out. Okay, Tess next."

"Tess. Espresso macchiato with one sugar. The most disgusting drink I have ever tasted in my whole life. Exactly like her Mom's drink except Tess adds sugar– bitter but with a touch of sweetness that I think Jason is responsible for. She wanted to be exactly like her Mom, but she's making changes, even if they are really small," I concluded.

Nate looked slightly impressed but then he smirked. I think he was picking that up from Shane too. "Okay, and what about me?"

I took a sip before I started. "You. Cappuccino with one sugar. You drink cappuccinos because you are a really practical person. You take your coffee as simply that – your coffee – it should give you that caffeine when you need it and allow you to have something in common with whomever you might be having a meeting with. A cappuccino is a simple coffee – no shots and no extra twists of anything. I think you're a pretty straight forward person too. Most of all though, your cappuccino represents your independence. You started drinking it after you got signed and that was when you began to show that you were your own person and you were capable of taking care of yourself." I paused to take another sip. "Oh and the whole practicality thing again because your coffee should stay warm throughout your meeting," I finished and I found Nate was staring at me with his mouth slightly open.

"How did you get all that from the little conversation we just had?" He asked.

I grinned, unable to help myself and stated, "Simple Nate. I pay attention." And then I burst out laughing at the look on his face.

"I've got to say Caitlyn, you did a really great job. You found out some stuff that I didn't manage and it sounds like you had a lot of fun doing it. Especially spinning around with Jason," he added and I froze.

How had he seen me do that**? **I thought no-one was watching! "How..?" I couldn't even form a full sentence. I couldn't believe he had been watching!

He looked at me and I could see that he was slightly embarrassed. "I heard you laughing so I came to see what was so funny, I guess."

I avoided his gaze and chose to take another sip of my coffee. I heard Nate clear his throat and I looked up hesitantly. "Anyway, the only thing I can't figure out is why you thought Shane was sweet. As far as I know, you two live to wind each other up," he said, and I could tell he was trying to get the conversation back to normal.

I shrugged. "Yeah, but then he called me his sister, so I guess -" I broke off realising what I had just said and I could almost hear Shane's voice.

"_Because my sister has a crush on you!"_

I looked at Nate and saw that his mouth had dropped open. Crap! I can't believe I said that! Okay, I had to leave. Now. I began to stand up from the stool I had been sitting on when he decided to speak.

"Caitlyn, did Shane..? I mean did **-"**

"Nate, I'm sorry to interrupt but I've got to go," I said, trying to make this conversation less uncomfortable. I turned to go and began to walk towards the door.

"No, Caitlyn, wait!" I nearly stopped but I couldn't bring myself to hear him let me down so I sped up.

"I can't Nate**.** I've really got to go!" I shouted over my shoulder, as I opened the door and let myself out. I jogged over to my car, threw open the door and began to pull out of the driveway. I wasn't ready to have my heart broken but I couldn't help the tears that overtook me as I drove as far away as I could from Nate.


	7. Love on Saturday

Disclaimer: I don't own anything to do with Camp Rock or Starbucks.

AN: I really do apologise for the ridiculously long wait, but here is the final chapter of 'Coffee.' It's to prompt no. 5 - **Love**. I'd like to thank everyone that has been reading/reviewing/favouriting/alerting. It really means a lot that you liked this. I've sort of tried to incorporate all the previous prompts into this chapter...if you can find them...'cause I'm weird like that.

I'd like to thank **FebruarySong** for leaving me amusing stories about buying coffee in her reviews...I sort of worked one of them into this Chapter a little...with permission of course! I hope you like it!

Finally, I'd like to dedicate this chapter to **suburbs**. She's been an absolutely amazing beta and without her this story...well it wouldn't really be worth reading. She's been really encouraging with this story and her support really means a lot. Thank you!

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**Chapter 7: Love on Saturday**

I turned over, pushing my duvet off of the bed. I still hadn't fallen asleep and it was already morning. I still couldn't bring myself to call Nate even though he had tried to call me a few times. I knew I shouldn't have left the way I did, but I wasn't ready to hear him tell me that he didn't like me in that way. I couldn't believe I had let it slip that I liked him after trying so hard to keep it a secret for so long.

I got out of bed and caught sight of myself in the mirror. My eyes were still red from the crying that I had done yesterday combined with the lack of sleep and my hair was a complete mess. I put it up into a messy bun and began to walk towards the kitchen when I heard a knock at the door. I looked at the clock in confusion – it wasn't even six yet, who would be at my apartment so early? I walked over to the door and pulled it open and my words caught in my throat when I saw Nate standing in front of me holding two coffee cups.

"Hey, Caitlyn," he said softly. I was vaguely aware of the fact that I looked like a mess and my mouth was still hanging open.

"Can I come in?" He asked. Still unable to say anything, I opened the door to let him in. My mind was spinning. What on earth was Nate doing here? And so early with coffee?

"You're probably wondering what I'm doing here." It was a statement and at once it annoyed me that Nate knew me so well. I glanced over at him to see that he had settled onto the couch and the coffee cups were sitting on the table.

I cleared my throat in an attempt to speak. "Why..?" I tried again. "Why are you here?" My voice sounded hoarse and I couldn't bring myself to look at him.

"You've still got to analyse your coffee," he said, and I blinked in surprise, finally bringing myself to look at him. He wasn't looking at me but staring at the coffee cups as though fascinated by them.

I walked over to sit opposite him. If he wasn't going to mention anything about yesterday, that was fine with me. But how was he acting so normal?

"I thought the whole point was for me to find out about everyone else's coffees. I don't remember you mentioning I had to analyse my own," I said, finally able to get a sentence out in one go.

He shrugged. "I thought you might want to. It might be interesting, and the whole point was to make a connection between someone's coffee and their personality," he said, still not quite meeting my eyes.

I raised an eyebrow at him. "And that was the only reason you came over?" I asked before mentally kicking myself. Why was I trying to get him to mention what had happened yesterday? If he was willing to ignore the mess I made, maybe I should just follow his lead.

He finally looked up at me and I found myself inhaling sharply as he met my eyes. I had forgotten just how he could take my breath away. He didn't look away, so I finally forced myself to. I couldn't do this again.

"I'm just going to… go to the bathroom. I'll be back in a few," I said, and he nodded just before I stood up and walked to the bathroom.

Five minutes and a quick freshen up later, I walked out into the living room again. Nate was standing by the shelves that I had yet to pack up and he turned when I cleared my throat.

"Coffee's still warm," he said, holding out a cup towards me. I walked over to the seat I had occupied not too long ago and watched him staring at his cup.

I smiled wryly. "I've tried a different coffee every day for nearly a week now. It won't kill you to do the same. Trust me, if I could force down that stuff that Tess drinks, you can handle my mocha."

He smiled slightly and I took a sip from my cup. I felt relieved to have the familiar taste of a mocha run down my throat. The chocolate and the coffee clashed and blended together at the same time. Thank God I could have my own coffee now. I glanced over at Nate to see him sitting there with his eyes closed, a slight grimace on his face.

"Hey, it's not that bad you know," I said, eagerly taking another sip from my cup. I had missed it more than I had realised.

"I know, but it just feels weird, trying a different coffee again. And remember, I've done this before," Nate replied, and it took me back to the beginning of this whole thing and how I wanted to do it so I knew what Nate was talking about.

"So when did you first have a mocha, Caitlyn?" Nate asked, and I looked at him. He looked curious and I felt a strange sense of déjà vu. At the same time, it was strange to be on the receiving end of that question.

I thought about the question before answering. "I'm not really sure, as weird as that sounds. I think it was after my Mom told me I should never have coffee because I was hyper enough without it," I replied.

"So why did you have it?"

I smiled. "Because she told me not to. And I was a little bit of a rebel when I was younger."

Nate snorted. "A little?"

I rolled my eyes at the obvious remark. "I didn't know what to order, so I asked the barista and she suggested a mocha. It was perfect."

I took a sip of my coffee and looked up to find Nate staring at me. "What did you like about it?"

I frowned. This was hard. I hadn't realised how hard these questions were when I was asking them. "I think…the fact that it was a bit of everything. It's still coffee but it's got quite a strong taste of chocolate as well. Of course, it tastes better with cream but I can't have that every day." I was staring into space and I saw Nate waving in front of me.

"Sorry, I guess I spaced out a little."

Nate nodded understandingly, taking a sip of his coffee. "Anyway, you're obviously not going to analyse your own personality so I think I'm going to have to do it for you," he said and I looked at him in surprise, gesturing for him to go on. I was still surprised that we had had a conversation without it being too awkward. I was trying my hardest not to think about the fact that it was obvious that Nate was trying to let me down gently. He was going along like nothing had happened; like I hadn't accidentally blurted out my most closely guarded secret.

"I think you put your finger on it. A mocha is a little coffee, a little chocolate and a little cream. It's a little bit of everything, just like you. You can be slightly bitter and pretty mean to people you don't like, but you can be amazingly sweet to those that you are close to you. You blend with people really easily, but you still stand out. You are really daring and that shows in the way you first picked your coffee – you asked someone who you didn't even know to pick it for you." He paused to take a sip of his coffee and then he looked up and met my eyes. "You're a little bit of everything Caitlyn – sweetness with an edge. It's one of the things I love about you so much."

I froze. What did he just say? And what did he mean by it? Did he love me as a friend or did he mean something else? I opened my mouth to ask him what he had meant, but I found myself rendered speechless. Why did Nate keep doing this to me?

He was smiling softly now. "The main reason I came over was to talk about yesterday, but I knew you probably wouldn't let me in if I said that's why I was here. I was going to ask you to analyse your coffee anyway, so it kind of worked out well. Why did you run off yesterday, Caitlyn?"

I was still staring at him with my mouth open. I closed it when I realised he had asked me something. I avoided his gaze as I answered. "I didn't really want hear you letting me down. I didn't want to be hurt and disappointed."

I could sense that he had gotten up but I kept my eyes on the floor. The sofa beside me sank down a little as I felt him sit next to me. "Did you really think I was going to reject you? That I didn't feel the same way about you?"

I nodded and finally turned to face him. He couldn't possibly be saying what I thought he was.

He brought his hand up to my face. "I nearly died of shock when you said that Shane thinks of you as his sister. I wanted to run after you yesterday but I was afraid that maybe I had misunderstood. So first I went to talk to Shane and Mitchie. They told me that you liked me Caitlyn, and I really didn't believe them at first. They've known that I like you too, for so long that I thought they were just winding me up because I thought they would have told me before. Then Mitchie told me that you didn't want me to know because you thought I didn't feel the same way."

He was looking straight into my eyes and I still couldn't bring myself to say anything.

"I love you, Caitlyn. I have for such a long time. Silly thing is, I think I realised when I was doing my coffee research; it made me sit down and really think about your personality. I tried to give you little hints – hugs, spending time together, but you seemed oblivious to it all. I love everything about you," he finished and I tried to subtly wipe away the tear that was threatening to fall out of my eye. Clearly, when someone else is holding onto your face, that isn't easy and Nate wiped the tear away before I could get to it.

He loved me! I still couldn't believe it! Mitchie had been right all along. And they had all been trying to give me hints…I had just been an idiot and not taken anything they said seriously.

"Er, Caitlyn, it would be kind of good if you said something…round about now, maybe…?" Nate said. He still hadn't taken his hand from my face and I let out a shaky laugh.

"I'm an idiot!" I exclaimed, and Nate took his hand away from me in shock.

"Caitlyn, I'm telling you I'm in love with you and the only thing you want to say is that you're an idiot?"

I burst out laughing as Nate continued to look at me in surprise. "I love you too!" I managed to say once the giggles had subsided and I saw Nate visibly relax.

"Well, thank God for that!" he exclaimed and I burst out laughing again. It wasn't long before he joined in himself.

"We've both been a little stupid haven't we?" he asked as I rested my head on his shoulder. I nodded and I felt him move so I lifted my head up to look at him.

He was looking at me and for the millionth time in my life I found myself looking at his eyes. I could make out the tiniest flecks of green that were getting closer – wait, why were they getting closer? I realised why as I felt his lips brush mine ever so softly as my eyes fluttered shut, and before he could pull away I looped my hands around his neck and pulled him closer. I could faintly taste the mocha on his lips, and I was sure he could taste the same on mine. I couldn't stop a slight smile creeping onto my face as I thought about how long I had loved Nate. And he loved me too!

And all it took was a few cups of coffee.


End file.
